Journey to Allah So rush to Allah (Qur an, 51:50)

Transcription

1 In the Name of God, the Most Compassionate, the Most Merciful SeekersGuidance Appalachian Retreat Journey to Allah So rush to Allah (Qur an, 51:50) Coker Creek, Tennessee June 3 - June 8,

2 Are you bored with being bombarded with billboard marketing and fed-up with finding nothing better to do than turn on the TV? Do you feel distanced from Allah and His signs, and from the way of the Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace)? SeekersGuidance is offering the opportunity for you to join them on a 5-day long spiritual retreat, where you can reconnect with Allah through learning, reflecting on His creation, engaging in remembrance of Allah, and through the inspiring company of scholars and other keen seekers. O you who believe! Be mindful of Allah and be with those true to commitment (Qur an, 9:119) Join us and our lineup of international scholars, who will accompany you on this journey. Benefit from their knowledge, understanding and gentle guidance during a series of uplifting lectures and workshops, and experience the wonders of performing acts of worship the way that the Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) did. THE SITE The SeekersGuidance retreat will be held at Coker Creek Village, located 75 miles southwest of Knoxville, Tennessee. This 300-acre park is nestled high in the southern Appalachian Mountains on the famed Ocoee River. Students will be surrounded by the creation of Allah and enveloped in some of the nation s most pristine national forests. Visit the site s website at for more information. ACCOMMODATIONS Students will be housed in bunkhouse log cabins, with brothers and sisters accommodated in separate sections of the site. We recommend traveling lightly as storage space is very limited. The site is supervised by trained personnel and will be assisted by members of the organizing committee. Food will be cooked onsite by the camp personnel and all the meat served will be zabihah (meat provided by a local zabihah meat provider and chicken provided by CrescentHalal.com). Classes will be held in the Village's new Retreat Center and other areas of the facility. Babysitting will be held in a room of the main hall where the adult sessions will generally take place. Private cabins are available on a first-come first-serve basis for families of more than four people (up to 5). These private cabins will be an additional $250 ($50 per night). Private family cabins include one queen bed, one futon, full private bathroom, refrigerator, microwave and coffeemaker. Please contact retreat@ seekersguidance.org if you are interested in reserving one of these private cabins. BABYSITTING Babysitting will be provided for all class sessions through the retreat (approximately 5-8 hours a day). There will be no babysitting during activities, meals, breaks & sleep. The cost will be an extra $15 per child per day (Saturday, Sunday, Monday and Tuesday). You will not be charged for babysitting on Friday and Wednesday, which will be for approximately one to two hours each. You are not obligated to keep your child in babysitting as long as the child is quiet during class sessions. Retreat staff volunteers will mandate babysitting if they misbehave or are loud during class sessions. 2

3 The youngest age that we will accept at the retreat without their parent is 14 years old. Please keep in mind the following policies when sending children not accompanied with their parents: Parents will be responsible to drop-off and pick-up their child to/from Masjid Annoor, Knoxville, TN ( for address) Waiver must be signed (download application form/waiver from Registration Form - see last page for waiver) If the child cannot be contained by the youth directors (Irfan Shuttari and Sadaf Shaukat) or the retreat staff, we will call the parents/guardians to please pick-up their child from the retreat facility - no refund will be issued. TEACHERS (bios below) Dr. Umar Faruq Abd-Allah Confirmed Shaykh Faraz Rabbani Confirmed Shaykh Yahya Rhodus Confirmed Shaykh AbdalKarim Yahya Confirmed Ustadha Zaynab Ansari Confirmed Ustadha Shireen Ahmed Confirmed Ustadh Sa'ad Qadri (Youth) Confirmed Ustadh Tayssir Safi (Youth) Confirmed Youth Directors Irfan Shuttari & Sadaf Shaukat-Shuttari Confirmed A broader variety of courses will be specified in the orientation package after registration is complete PARALLELL YOUTH PROGRAM A parallel program for youth between the ages of will be held at the site. The program will be held separately from the adults and will consist of classes highlighting the main theme. Children under 14 years of age will not be allowed to attend the youth sessions. They will be more than welcome to attend the adult sessions with their parents or play in the field where parents are able to keep an eye on them during sessions. Students who are 19 years old will have the option of being a part of the youth or the adult program. The Youth Directors will be responsible for the youth at all times during the retreat and will ensure the youth are maintaining good adab (etiquette) at all time. Classes will be taught by various teachers. Some programs and activities, such as the group prayers, dhikr (supplication) sessions, and meals will be combined for the youth and adults. The daily schedule will be less rigorous and will include more recreational time. ACTIVITIES Archery White Water Rafting on the world famous Ocoee river: (12 years old and above only) White Water Rafting on the Hiwassee river (8-12 years old with parents) Special gathering on Buck Bald Summit Campfire gatherings with halal s mores Horseback riding & Mountain bike trail ride Miles of hiking trails Gold Panning & Mining for rubies & emeralds 3

4 Climbing tower with zip line Low ropes/team building course Swimming, Volleyball, Basketball, Ultimate frisbee APPLICATION AND REGISTRATION FEES ADULTS (19 years and older) $400 each ($80 per day*) YOUTH (14 to 18) $400 each ($80 per day*) OFF-SITE LODGING ADULTS/YOUTH $300 each ($60 per day*) ADULTS & YOUTH FAMILY/GROUP RATE $350 each ($70 per day*) AGES 8-13 $250 each ($50 per day*) AGES 4-7 $100 each ($20 per day* plus babysitting charges) AGES 0-4 $0 (babysitting charges only) White Water Rafting on Ocoee $30 per person to be paid on-site White Water Rafting on Hiwassee $25 per person to be paid on-site *The registration cost includes: travel to the facility from the airport & local Masjid and back, all meals, lodging, material/educational needs, all activities and most importantly: access to all lectures/scholars. The registration cost excludes travel expenses, babysitting and white water rafting. SCHOLARSHIPS & QUESTIONS Please seekersguidance.org for any questions related to the retreat and for scholarship opportunities. Payments can be made in monthly installments, please seekersguidance.org to setup a payment plan. TRANSPORTATION & TRAVEL PLANS Students flying in from out of town should plan to arrive in Knoxville s McGhee Tyson Airport (airport code TYS) no earlier than Friday morning, June 3 rd. Anyone who arrives on Thursday will be responsible for his or her own lodging and transportation to Annoor Masjid. For directions to Annoor Masjid, please visit Transportation from the airport to Annoor Masjid will be provided on Friday morning until 1pm. After 1pm, you will be responsible for your own transportation to Annoor Masjid. You must arrive at Annoor Masjid by 3pm on Friday, June 3 rd, otherwise you will have no transportation to get to the remotely located Coker Creek Village If you are driving from out of town, you may drive directly to Coker Creek Village (visit for directions) and meet the group there on Friday, June 25 th 4:30-5:00pm We will be departing from Annoor Masjid ( to Coker Creek Village on Friday, June 3 rd 3:00pm this trip will be approximately 1 hour and 30 minutes (70 miles) We will be departing from Coker Creek Village to Annoor Masjid on Wednesday morning, June 8 th at 10:00am Transportation from Annoor Masjid to the airport will be provided from 2:00-8:00pm Please ensure your flight from Knoxville departs after 2:00pm on June 8 th LODGING OFF-SITE 4

5 All attendees lodging off-site will be responsible to make their own accommodations to drive to the facility. Registration costs for off-site lodging are listed above. Most of the expenses for the retreat are related to the non-lodging services we are providing (teachers, material, activities, zabihah food, etc). Hunt s Lodge ~1.5 miles 9555 New Highway 68 Tellico Plains, TN (423) Tellico Vacation Rentals ~7 miles 113 Scott Street Tellico Plains, TN (423) Discover Monroe ~1.3 miles P.O. Box 69 Coker Creek, TN (423) Tall Pines Lodge ~2.3 miles 109 Tall Pine Circle Tellico Plains, TN (423) Lodge At Tellico ~5.7 miles 9436 New Highway 68 Tellico Plains, TN (423) Sunflower Inn ~6.1 miles 507 Highway 165 Tellico Plains, TN (423) Hog Heaven Resort ~6.6 miles 535 Mecca Pike Tellico Plains, TN (423) Green Cove Motel/Trailer Camp ~8.6 miles 2870 River Road Tellico Plains, TN (423)

6 ABOUT THE TEACHERS Dr. Umar Faruq Abd-Allah is an American Muslim, born in 1948 to a Protestant family in Columbus, Nebraska. Dr. Abd-Allah did his undergraduate work at the University of Missouri with dual majors in History and English Literature. He made the Dean s list all semesters and was nominated to the Phi Beta Kappa Honorary Society. In 1969, he won a Woodrow Wilson Fellowship and entrance to Cornell University in Ithaca, New York to pursue a Ph.D. program in English literature. Shortly after coming to Cornell, Dr. Abd-Allah read The Autobiography of Malcolm X, which inspired him to embrace Islam in early In 1972, he altered his field of study and transferred to the University of Chicago, where he studied Arabic and Islamic Studies under Dr. Fazlur Rahman. Dr. Abd-Allah received his doctorate with honors in 1978 for a dissertation on the origins of Islamic Law, Malik s Concept of Amal in the Light of Maliki Legal Theory. From 1977 until 1982, he taught at the Universities of Windsor (Ontario), Temple, and Michigan. In 1982, he left America to teach Arabic in Spain. Two years later, he was appointed to the Department of Islamic Studies at King Abdul-Aziz University in Jeddah, where he taught (in Arabic) Islamic studies and comparative religions until During his years abroad, Dr. Abd-Allah had the privilege of studying with a number of traditional Islamic scholars. He returned to Chicago in August 2000 to work as chair and scholar-in-residence of the newly founded Nawawi Foundation, a non-profit educational foundation. In conjunction with this position, he is now teaching and lecturing in and around Chicago and various parts of the United States and Canada, while conducting research and writing in Islamic studies and related fields. He recently completed a biography of Mohammed Webb (d. 1916), A Muslim in Victorian America: The Story of Alexander Russell Webb (Oxford University Press), who was one of the most significant early American converts to Islam. Dr. Abd-Allah is presently completing a second work entitled Roots of Islam in America: A Survey of Muslim Presence in the New World from Earliest Evidence until 1965 and is also updating his dissertation for publication. Shaykh Faraz Rabbani is a researcher and teacher of the Islamic sciences, specializing in Islamic Law. He is the Educational Director of SeekersGuidance, and a partner and legal advisor with StraightWay Ethical Advisory. He is the author of Absolute Essentials of Islam: Faith, Prayer, and the Path of Salvation According to the Hanafi School (White Thread Press, 2004.) Shaykh Faraz was raised in Canada and obtained a Bachelor's in Economics & Commerce from the University of Toronto in Subsequently, he spent ten years studying and teaching Islamic sciences in Damascus, Amman and Karachi under leading Islamic scholars including Shaykh Adib Kallas, Shaykh Hassan al-hindi, Shaykh Muhammad Jumuah, Shaykh Akram Abd al-wahhab, Shaykh Nuh Keller, and Mufti Mahmud Ashraf Usmani. He currently lives and teaches in Toronto, Canada, with his wife and three children. Shaykh Yahya Rhodus was born in America s Midwest. He became Muslim at the age of 19 in the San Francisco Bay Area and began studying with Shaykh Hamza Yusuf and distinguished scholars visiting from Mauritania, Shaykh Khatry and Shaykh Abdullah Ould Ahmadna. In 1998, he left for Mauritania to further his studies of Islamic Sciences. There he spent over a year studying with some of Mauritania's great scholars, including Shaykh Murabit al-hajj, one the great scholars of our age. In 2000, he moved to Tarim, Yemen to continue his studies at the prestigious Dar al-mustafa. There he studied with renowned scholars including Habib `Ali al-jifry, Habib `Umar bin Hafiz, and other local scholars. In 2005, he returned to the US from his studies overseas to serve as a full-time teacher at Zaytuna Institute until the summer of To further his studies he then moved back to Tarim, where he currently resides with his family. 6

7 Shaykh AbdalKarim Yahya was born and raised in Berkeley, California. By the Grace of Allah, embraced Islam in 1989 in his home city. In 1996, having been inspired to study religious knowledge by the books of Imam Ghazali (Allah be pleased with him) and the call for the revival of Islamic knowledge, he traveled with his family to Damascus, Syria where he embarked on a course of active pursuit of knowledge. During his two-year stay in Damascus he focused his attention on the acquisition of an elementary knowledge of the Arabic language and Quranic recitation, studying the latter under the tutelage of the highly respected Shaykh of Qur'an Abu Anas (Allah preserve him) at the Rawda Mosque in Damascus. Thereafter he moved on with his family to Tarim, Hadramaut where he currently resides. As a student at Dar al-mustafa he has primarily turned his efforts towards keeping the company of his Shaykhs from the noble prophetic descendents of Ba Alawi and their lovers as well as attaining a knowledge of the Islamic Sciences. Specializing in jurisprudence according to the school of Muhammad Bin Idris al-shafi'i (Allah be pleased with him), Shaykh AbdulKarim has studied the curriculum of jurisprudence at Dar al-mustafa all the way to the Minhaj of Imam Nawawi (Allah be pleased him). Since 1998, Shaykh AbdulKarim has been studying at the hands of Habib Umar and his older brother Habib Mashhour, the two sons of the late Habib Muhammad Bin Salim Bin Hafiz, as well as the other teachers of Dar al- Mustafa in Tarim, Hadramaut. Shaykh AbdulKarim has been given permission to answer questions according to the Shafi'i School as well as to teach jurisprudence, Arabic Grammar, and other disciplines by his Shaykh Habib Umar, Allah preserve him. He has also worked extensively as a translator For Habib Umar Bin Hafiz and Habib Ali al-jifri (Allah preserve both of them). Ustadha Shireen Ahmed (Umm Umar) was born and raised in Canada. She graduated from the University of Toronto with a B.A. in Psychology and Sociology. During her university studies, she was actively involved in MSA work at the local as well as the national level. After graduation, Umm Umar spent three years in Syria, studying Arabic at the University of Damascus and Islamic studies at Jamia Abi Nour and taking private classes in Tajweed, Hadith, Hanafi Fiqh and Seerah. Subsequently, she spent seven years in Jordan furthering her studies of Arabic and Hanafi Fiqh. During this time, she also worked at SunniPath developing online courses. Umm Umar is currently responsible for Course Development at SeekersGuidance. She resides in Toronto, Canada, with her husband and three children. Between continuing her studies of the sacred sciences and homeschooling her children, Ustadha Shireen is working on her first publication, Thread of Pure Gold, which is a translation and a commentary on the classical Islamic text on parenting, Simtu al- Uqyan. Zaynab Ansari (Umm Salah) Zaynab Ansari Abdul-Razacq is a native Southerner with Northern roots. She spent several years studying the core Islamic sciences, including Arabic, jurisprudence, Qur anic recitation & commentary, Hadith, and Prophetic biography in Damascus, Syria at Abu Nour Masjid s college preparatory program. Upon her return to the United States, she continued her Islamic studies privately with Shaykh Khalil Abdur-Rashid, Imam of New York s Iqra Masjid, Shaykh Faraz Rabbani, educational director of SeekersGuidance, Shaykh Jamal Ud- Deen Hysaw, and Dr. Fareeha Khan, Assistant Professor of Religion & Anthropology at Willamette University. From 2004 to 2009, she volunteered, answered questions, and taught for SunniPath Academy. She currently answers questions for SeekersGuidance Answers Blog, writes for Azizah Magazine s Deen Department, and volunteers with the Islamic Speakers Bureau of Atlanta. She did her undergraduate work in History and Middle Eastern Studies and is planning to pursue a master s degree in World History at Georgia State University in the fall. She is married and has three children. Mohammed Tayssir Safi Mohammed grew up in the United States of America attending both private and public schools, graduating from Pioneer High School in He then attended the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, where he graduated in 2006 with degrees in both Political Science and Middle Eastern and North African Studies. Upon graduation, Mohammed spent a year and a half abroad in Cairo, Egypt where he completed the year long Arabic intensive at the Center for Arabic Study Abroad. He supplemented that program with private study 7

8 primarily in linguistics of the Arabic language as well as introductory Islamic sciences. He then spent 10 months at the Dar al-mustafa Institute in Tarim, Yemen where he continued the study of introductory material in the Islamic Sciences. Mohammed has been employed as a teacher of the Arabic language as well as a professional translator of Islamic Texts. He currently resides in Ann Arbor, Michigan with his family. Sa'ad Quadri is an English teacher at the Islamic Foundation School. He completed his Bachelor's degree in English and History at Northern Illinois University and is pursuing his Master's degree in Education at DePaul University. Sa'ad completed high school a year early in order to study Islamic sciences at the Institute of Islamic Education. He is currently continuing his studies in the Sacred Learning Individual Study Program. Sa'ad also works for High Quality Education Consulting, with whom he has co-authored The War Within Our Hearts: Struggles of the Muslim Youth and Parenting...Who Said it Was Easy? Understanding Our Children. 8

9 INQUIRIES All inquiries should be directed to seekersguidance.org. Registration fees and physical applications should be mailed to: Noman Zaheer 2700 Dee Peppers Dr Knoxville, TN LIMITED CAPACITY 150 Students APPLY NOW Deadline: April 30,

10 SEEKERSGUIDANCE RETREAT APPLICATION FORM All information in this application form is confidential and will not be shared with anyone outside the retreat committee The consent and waiver must be signed and submitted by a parent of the student under 18 years old STUDENT First Name: MI: Last Name: Date of Birth: / / Month Day Year Address: City: If under 18 years of age: State: Zip Code: Parent First Name: Parent Last Name: PHONE NUMBERS AND *Home: ( ) - Work: ( ) - Cell: ( ) - * Address: - you will be added to the SG Retreat announcement list (* required fields) SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS Please list any dietary restrictions you may have including allergies Please list any relevant health concerns you may have including any illnesses (physical or mental) and medications you are currently taking EMERGENCY CONTACT INFORMATION In case of emergency, please contact: First Name: Last Name: Home: ( ) - Work: ( ) - Cell: ( ) - Relationship to student: 10

11 FEES Can I (you) meet the full cost before the beginning of the program? YES NO If not, how much scholarship/aid would you be requesting? $ Method of payment: CHECK: Payable to MCK Ibn Masud School (Include check with application form and mail or hand-deliver to organizers) MONEY ORDER (Include check with application form and mail or hand-deliver to organizers) PAYPAL (Register online through PayPal account: ims@ muslimknoxville.org) CREDIT CARD CREDIT CARD INFORMATION Full Name on CC: Card Type: Visa MasterCard American Express Discover CC Number: Expiration Date: Billing zip code: Three digit security code (CVS): DONATIONS Tax Exempt: You will receive a Tax Exempt Receipt from the Muslim Community of Knoxville Donations will primarily be used in the area specified, if funds in the specific area mentioned have been met, we will use them in other areas where it is needed SCHOLARSHIP FUND FOR STUDENT DONATION $ SPONSOR A TEACHER $ SPONSOR MARKETING CAMPAIGN $ GENERAL DONATION TOWARDS THE RETREAT $ Method of Donation: CHECK: Payable to MCK Ibn Masud School (Include check with application form and mail or hand-deliver to organizers) specify donation area in memo MONEY ORDER (Include check with application form and mail or hand-deliver to organizers) CREDIT CARD (We will use the same CC info as above) PAYPAL (make donations to PayPal account: ims@ muslimknoxville.org) 11

12 AGREEMENT I confirm that the information listed in this application is current and accurate to the best of my knowledge. I understand that any false information presented in this application may result in my dismissal from the program without any refund of tuition payments. All information in this application is confidential and will not be shared with anyone outside the SeekersGuidance Retreat committee. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT AND RELEASE I have read and understood the information packet attached to this application. I understand that the student is expected to take this program seriously and abide by the given information and the rules of the SeekersGuidance retreat. I understand that any student who fails to abide by the rules, disrupts the retreat, and/or endangers the safety or wellbeing of others may be asked to leave the retreat without a refund of registration payment. I also understand and agree that SeekersGuidance, the Muslim Community of Knoxville (MCK), as well as the Teachers, Staff or Volunteers of the mentioned organizations and retreat will not be held liable for any accidents, injuries, damages, or other loss that may occur during the student s participation in the SeekersGuidance retreat, including during travel to or from the airport, to or from the retreat location, or to or from any other locations during the retreat. In the event of any medical emergency, I authorize SeekersGuidance, MCK, and/or retreat staff or volunteers to authorize medical assistance on site or at an appropriate medical facility. (Any student who is under 18 years of age must have a parent or legal guardian sign below to verify permission to attend the retreat and acknowledgement and agreement to the above.) Student Signature: Date: Parent Signature (if student is under 18): Date: 12